HTC One S for T-Mobile: review, price, availability and more

T-Mobile has said that a fix is on the way for an issue that affects the HTC One S’ battery life when using the Wi-Fi calling feature. We hadn’t heard much about the problem ourselves, and didn’t run into it in our review, but the carrier says that it’ll be resolved in a forthcoming software update anyway. In the meantime, T-Mobile advises keeping your phone plugged in when making calls over Wi-Fi. No word on when that update will be released, but it’s good to see the carrier getting ahead of the issue — as well as drawing attention to an under-supported feature that doesn’t seem to get much love from many.

Note: Our original review was of the unlocked, GSM One S. We’ve updated the review with impressions and tests of the $199 (with contract) T-Mobile model as well. Check out the Hardware, Connectivity and Software sections to see the biggest differences between the two devices, which are generally quite similar.

When I first saw the HTC One series, in that top secret subterranean bunker where HTC likes to preview its phones, my attention and desire were immediately drawn by the One S. I didn’t care about the 4.7-inch, quad-core One X and its supposed flagship position, I wanted to know more about its 4.3-inch ultrathin brandmate. That’s no knock on the One X, which ticks all the boxes for a legitimate Galaxy Nexus competitor, but the 7.8mm thick One S offers a much more mainstream form factor and price point, while also being the thinnest smartphone that HTC has ever made.

Camera performance has been a real priority for HTC with the One series and all three of its newly launched Android handsets come with a selection of important optimizations. Firstly, a dedicated imaging processor has been added to allow the One phones to manipulate pictures before compressing them to JPEG format. HTC expects this to result in lower image noise, greater color accuracy, and higher overall quality.

Most of the improvements in the One cameras actually relate to speed. Startup time of the camera app is said to be 0.7 seconds and autofocus takes a blistering 0.2 seconds, making it quicker than the blink of an eye. Holding down the onscreen shutter button (you’ll find no physical camera keys on these phones) automatically flips you into burst mode, with an intelligent selection menu then allowing you to pick the best shot of the bunch and discard the rest. There’s no longer any need to switch between video and photo modes — the software buttons for capturing stills and video sit right next to each other now, and HTC’s neatest trick is that it also allows you to snap photos while recording video. And if you want to pull out a still from a video recording you’ve already made, HTC lets you do that too.